October 2011 France Match
Match Setting The final match of the Group Stage for the UEFA Euro Qualifiers pitted the unbeaten leader of the group and the aspiring 2nd placed team, that needs some results in order to get to the playoff stage. Following the 3-1 victory over Luxembourg, Bosnia and Herzegovina was second with 19 points, 6 points behind France, and only a point above Romania, who visited Albania in the last match. Squad The squad was announced on October 3rd and consisted of 23 players, most of which play abroad with the exception of Josip Lukacevic, who plays for Osijek in the Adriatic Superleague. It consisted on 3 GK, 8 Defensemen (4 Fullbacks and 4 Center Backs), 8 Midfielders (2 Defensive Midfielders, 4 Central Midfielders and 2 Attacking Midfielders), and 4 Strikers. Hoffenheim was the most represented team, with 2 players, and the German Bundesliga, was the most represented league with 5 players. The following players were set to gain their first intenational cap if they got into the pitch: Emir Hadzic, Kenan Handzic and Danijel Majkic The squad list is after the break: 23-man Squad Missing Players Miralem Pjanic was out with a calf injury, he was expected to return for the next squad. Senad Lulic was out, because of a technical decision, the team won't use players in his position. Boris Pandza is out for the rest of the 2011 season, with knee tendonitis. If he recovers well, he can be available for February. Dragan Blatnjak was out, because of a technical decision, the team won't use players in his position. Safet Nadarevic is out of the squad due to his poor club form. Tactics The team wanted to repeat the tactic they used for the match against Luxembourg, but a last minute injury to Vedad Ibisevic forced Mikulic to change things around. Ermin Zec was the chosen one, and the team practiced during the week in order to prevent France strong attacks, and try to launch dangerous counter-attacks. The detail of the positions and roles is in the table that follows. Result and Analysis France won the match 3-1 Analysis As the game started, France positioned themselves better in the midfield, causing the Bosnians retreat, and limiting them to long passes and solo runs. At the 21 minute mark, Samir Nasri scored after a beautiful team play. France retreated a bit after their goal, which caused Bosnia to take the initiative, though without much danger. In fact, in their first deep oportunity the Bosnians stroke lucky in the 38th minute, after Ermin Zec grabbed a loose ball in area and scored. In the second half, the French came out more aggresively, but couldn't get a hold of the ball, which was very carefully treated by the Bosnians. But, a silly mistake by the defensive line, left Karim Benzema 1-on-1 with the keeper and he scored. Finally, with Bosnia and Herzegovina pushing forward, a deadly counter-attack ended in a great Löic Rémy goal in the 85th minute. Fortunately, Albania scored on a lucky counter-attack and won the match 1-0, which qualified the Bosnians for the Playoff Phase of the Euro Qualifiers. Important Stats Possession % = 44-56 Passes Completed % = 85-84 Shots = 14-8 Clear Cut Chances = 1-0 Long Shots = 6-1 Individual Performances Löic Rémy was the man of the match, always causing trouble for the Bosnian defense. Ermin Zec was the best player for Bosnia and Herzegovina, capping his performance with a great goal.